Human-Jaguar Competition and Conflict: a Case Study in the Colón Biological Corridor
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Human-jaguar competition and conflict: a case study in the Colón Biological Corridor Joel Moyer and Elizabeth Shebell Supervisor: Dr. Ana Spalding SOMASPA supervisors: Julieta Carrion de Samudio and Rafael Samodio, Jr ENVR 451 Research in Panama McGill University April 2014 1 Institutions Name: McGill University Address: 845 Sherbrook Street West, Montreal, QC H3A0G4, Quebec, Canada. Telephone: +1-514-398-4455 Name: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institution Address: Smithsonian Tropical Research Inst. Roosvelt Ave. Balboa, Ancón Panamá, República de Panamá Telephone: +507 212 8000 Name: SOMASPA: Sociedad Mastozoológico de Panamá Address: Aptdo. Postal 0835-00680- Parque Lefevre, Zona 10, Panama, Republica de Panama. Telephone: (507) 395-3021 2 Acknowledgements Firstly, we would like to thank our project supervisors Rafael Samudio Jr. and Julieta Carrion de Samudio of SOMASPA for their continued support and guidance throughout the semester. Also a big thank you to Eric Donoso, who taught us a great deal about camera-trapping and mammal observation. We would also like to thank our professor and teaching assistant, Ana Spalding and Victor Frankel. They continually provided helpful feedback and helped us move in a positive direction that has made this such a rewarding experience and successful final product. In the field, we were very fortunate to have the help of our guides Jose Vergara and Antonio Hernandez. They generously showed us around their communities and introduced us to other community members, helping us to complete the interview portion of our research. A big thank you to Heikki Rissanen, who not only graciously provided us with transportation to the more remote areas, but also provided us with accommodations and invaluable information about the area. We would also like to extend many thanks to Jaime and Gonzalo of the Sierra Llorona Panama Lodge. They gave us a very comfortable place to stay and offered their surrounding land for our camera traps and line transects. Last but not least, thank you to all of our fellow students and professors for making this whole semester a rewarding and memorable experience. In addition, a special thank you goes to Catherine Potvin and Hector Barrios for selecting us for this program and keeping this invaluable educational experience running for so many years. 3 Table of Contents 1.0 Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................... 6 1.1 Resumen Ejecutivo ................................................................................................................ 7 2.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 8 2.1 Host Institution ..................................................................................................................... 8 2.2 Background Information ........................................................................................................ 9 2.3 Biological Corridor ............................................................................................................... 10 2.4 Sierra Llorona and Santa Rita Arriba...................................................................................... 11 2.5 The Jaguar (Panthera onca) .................................................................................................. 12 2.5.1 Ecological Importance of Jaguars .................................................................................. 12 2.5.2 Jaguar Hunting Strategies and Prey ............................................................................... 14 2.5.3 Jaguar Threats and Conservation................................................................................... 15 2.6 Objectives ........................................................................................................................... 16 2.7 Hypothesis and Expected Results.......................................................................................... 16 3.0 Methodology.............................................................................................................................. 17 3.1 Interviews ........................................................................................................................... 17 3.2 Camera Trapping ................................................................................................................. 18 3.3 Line Transects ..................................................................................................................... 19 4.0 Results ....................................................................................................................................... 19 4.1 Interviews ........................................................................................................................... 19 4.1.1 Overall Trends .............................................................................................................. 20 4.1.2 Sierra Llorona 1 ............................................................................................................ 23 4.1.3 Sierra Llorona 2 ............................................................................................................ 26 4.1.4 Santa Rita Arriba .......................................................................................................... 28 4.2 Line Transects ..................................................................................................................... 32 4.3 Camera Traps ...................................................................................................................... 33 5.0 Discussion .................................................................................................................................. 34 5.1 Animal Abundance............................................................................................................... 34 5.2 Hunting Pressure ................................................................................................................. 34 5.3 Food Security ...................................................................................................................... 36 4 5.4 Conservation and Land Use Change ...................................................................................... 37 5.5 Limitations .......................................................................................................................... 39 5.6 Recommendations for Future Research ................................................................................ 41 6.0 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................ 42 7.0 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................... 44 Appendix 1 ...................................................................................................................................... 47 Appendix 2 ...................................................................................................................................... 48 Appendix 3 ...................................................................................................................................... 48 Appendix 4 ...................................................................................................................................... 53 Appendix 5 ...................................................................................................................................... 54 Appendix 6 ...................................................................................................................................... 55 Appendix 7 ...................................................................................................................................... 56 Appendix 8 ...................................................................................................................................... 57 Appendix 9 ...................................................................................................................................... 60 5 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A study was conducted during the months of January-April 2014 in the communities of Sierra Llorona and Santa Rita Arriba, within the province of Colón, Panama. The purpose of this study was to investigate human hunting pressure on prey species of jaguars, and the ensuing problems this poses for jaguars and local people. The areas of study are located within the Colón biological corridor, which connects the protected areas of Chagres National Park and Soberanía National Park. This corridor is also a major link between Central and South American populations of jaguars, allowing for gene flow of the species. Jaguars are a keystone species within Neotropical forest systems and help to maintain high levels of biodiversity and stability within ecosystems. Despite their ecological importance, there are many conservation threats facing jaguars today. Our study focuses on the threat posed by human hunting pressure on jaguar prey species and its affect on the viability of the Colón biological corridor. Methodologies used include interviews with local people and indices of abundance created using data collected from line transects and camera trap stations. The qualitative and quantitative